This story seems to be made up, but it happened and it is incredible. The strange story happened on June 10, 1986 in the city of Salt Lake City in the United States. Michelle Funk, then two years old, suffered an accident in which she slipped in the snow and fell into a stream, where she remained submerged for more than an hour until she was found. Her brother, who saw the fall, informed her mother, who in turn ran for ten minutes to look for the girl. To no avail, he called the local fire department. From then on, an incredible and bizarre story began.
This story impresses anyone who comes across the facts. Even the doctors could not explain the reason, but after the procedures the girl came back to life. She was cold and blue when firefighters rescued her and there were no signs of life. But something happened that changed the young woman's fate.
Purely illustrative image of the stream / Pixabay
According to the New York Times, the rescue team began searching eight minutes after arriving at the scene. The firefighters' first action was to stem the flow of a reservoir that was flowing into the creek, hoping to find Michelle once the water level dropped. A short time later they noticed his arm in the water. In a desperate moment they realized she was trapped in a rock.
Firefighters managed to get her out of the water without a heartbeat or signs of life 66 minutes after she was called, according to the newspaper. Her skin had bluish tones, she wasn't breathing, the girl no longer had a pulse. In addition, her pupils were very dilated, so the likelihood that she had suffered severe brain damage was high. Nevertheless, they tried everything to revive her and then took her to a hospital with the help of a helicopter.
Photo credit: New York Times Archives
At the hospital she was treated by Dr. Robert G. Bolte in pediatrics, who used a body warming technique that involves constantly pumping and heating blood through a machine used in surgery. About three hours after the child fell into the stream, he still appeared lifeless. Michelle's temperature was extremely low and “many would have pronounced her dead at this point.” In the operating room, doctors inserted tubes into Michelle's groin veins and connected her to the machine. As a result, his temperature slowly began to rise.
After her blood reached 25°C, she started coughing and after an hour she opened her eyes. Soon after, doctors discovered a weak heartbeat. About 53 minutes into the process, the child was removed from the machine and taken to the intensive care unit, where he gradually recovered. Two weeks after being admitted to the hospital, she managed to smile at her parents and carry on. After three weeks she was already trying to say a few words. Over the next four weeks, she was able to formulate short sentences and sit for a maximum of 10 seconds.
Bypass Machine / Getty Images
recreation
As incredible as it may seem, Michelle began to recover quickly. As a result, she initially lost her sight, but soon regained her sight completely.
A good two months after the accident, the girl left the hospital completely recovered, only with a slight tremor in her hands, which soon disappeared. According to doctors, the only explanation for the case is that she must have been severely hypothermic, in a very rapid process that would have prevented brain damage. Virtually an instant freeze.
The medical journal Journal of the American Medical Association published an article at the time saying the case appeared to be a “miracle.” An editorial published that “the 66 minutes that Michelle spent in the stream was the longest documented submersion with an intact neurological outcome.” The text also states that the initiative of the doctor who treated Michelle was the first successful one The machine was used to bring the girl back to life. Typically, surgeons use Dr. Bolte used technique to restore patients' normal body temperature after intentionally cooling them before surgeries to reduce brain damage.
Michelle Funk / Disclosure
Turning 40 this year, Michelle is a fulltime dental assistant at her father's dental practice in Salt Lake City, Utah in the United States. Occasional hand tremors are a minimal physical impact of the accident given the potential severity of prolonged submersion. She wears glasses to compensate for the eye damage caused by anoxia. As a child, therapy helped strengthen physical and cognitive abilities. Her sense of balance is impaired even though she walks and plays golf regularly.
In Michelle's case, the use of this technology shows that medicine is constantly evolving and is looking for technical advancements. This time of year, many young children drown in backyard pools, ponds, and beaches. Which requires a lot of attention and care from everyone. Michelle Funk's case is no guarantee that others can experience a miraculous recovery. Therefore, care needs to be doubled and prevention measures can save lives.
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